I read a story yesterday that made me cry. A lesbian couple from the state of Washington were here in Forida with their children for a family vacation. One of the women suffered a stroke and was rushed to the hospital. I could scarcely keep reading when I got to the part about what happened to her and her family in that hospital.
Imagine for a moment that your spouse of 18 years was dying. And then the doctors and nurses told you that you were not allowed to go in and be with this person you love and hold their hand and say goodbye. That is exactly what happened to this family even though a power of attorney from the patient was faxed to the hospital within the hour and it designated her spouse as her representative and next of kin. I could picture myself or my own spouse and our grief-stricken children in the waiting room of some hospital when I read this story. And I didn't like it. Not one little bit. In reading the details of the story, it was clear that this was a callous and cold-hearted case of discrimination. It was a real-life horror story. How DARE some hospital staff in some backwoods idiot place decide who this woman's family was when she had already decided for herself? The NERVE of them. It makes me see red.
Well, sometimes there is justice later on. I do not like how President Obama makes things sound all rosy when they are not, and I'm as concerned and confused as many others are about what might happen with the new health care plan, but DAMN IT - at least the guy is not sitting back on his ass. He fucking did something about it. And it matters. It's about goddamn time.
